What does it take to be a better leader? From corporate CEOs to heads of small organizations, people who oversee others wrestle with that question often. If you’re an organization leader looking for inspiration to improve your skills, TED Talks on leadership can offer great insights.
Dedicated to “ideas worth spreading,” TED Talks are short, casual speeches (usually under 18 minutes), on a huge range of topics, delivered before live audiences. Started in 1984 with a focus on technology, entertainment, and design, TED Talks aim to deepen our understanding of the global community.
Looking for ways to become a better leader? We’ve chosen several TED Talks on leadership, and have highlighted one great take-away (of many) from each speech.
Check out these seven TED Talks from leaders in business, design, and the arts on how to be a better leader:
1. What It Takes to Be a Great Leader by Rosalinde Torres
The take-away: Understand where to look to anticipate change, and diversify your network. Torres, an expert in the area of organizational leadership, says many companies are failing to nurture great leaders. “In a 21st century world which is more global, digitally enabled, and transparent, with faster speeds of information flow and innovation, and where nothing big gets done without some kind of a complex matrix, relying on traditional development practices will stunt your growth as a leader.”
Anticipating and embracing change is key to success, she said.”Build the emotional stamina to withstand people telling you that your new idea is naive, or reckless, or just plain stupid.”
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2. Everyday Leadership by Drew Dudley
The take-away: Give—and accept—credit for the “everyday things” that define real leadership. Recognize “lollipop moments,” those seeming inconsequential times where “somebody did something or said something that you feel fundamentally made your life better,” said Dudley, a motivational speaker and leadership expert.
“We let people who have made our lives better walk around without even knowing it…. As long as we keep leadership something beyond us, as long as we make it about changing the world, we give ourselves an excuse not to expect it everyday from ourselves and from each other.” Dudley takes a broad worldview of leadership: “If you can change one person’s understanding of [leadership], we change the whole thing.”
3, Why We Have Too Few Women Leaders by Sheryl Sandberg
The take-away: Negotiate for yourself in the workforce. Sandberg, the chief operating officer at Facebook and a bestselling author, notes that often, “Women face harder choices between professional success and personal fulfillment” than their male counterparts. How to address the problem? Sandberg advocates that women continue to step up, recognize all they have to offer, and demand a seat at the table.
“Women systematically underestimate their own abilities,” she says. What’s more, in Sandberg’s view, “Women do not negotiate for themselves in the workforce… Men attribute their success to themselves and women attribute it to other external factors… No one gets to the corner office by sitting at the side, not the table.
4. How Art, Technology, and Design Inform Creative Leaders by John Maeda
The take-away: Embrace “creative leadership” by learning from mistakes. A designer, technologist, and former president of the Rhode Island School of Design, Maeda explores the intersection of technology, design, art, and leadership. He urges leaders to acknowledge how many organizations have moved from a hierarchical, top-down structure, to a heterarchical, unranked system.
“What can we learn from artists and designers on how to lead?” Maeda asks. “In many senses, a regular leader loves to avoid mistakes. Someone who’s creative actually loves to learn from mistakes. A traditional leader is always wanting to be right, while a creative leader hopes to be right… Leaders [make] improbable connections and hope something will happen.”
5. Dare to Disagree by Margaret Heffernan
The take-away: Find a hard problem and solve it. Heffernan, a businesswoman and author, counsels leaders to find partners and collaborators who aren’t echo chambers. “Seek out people with different backgrounds, different ways of thinking, and different experiences and find ways to engage with them,” Heffernan said, adding: “Be prepared to change your mind.”
Heffernan’s belief is that often, team members within organizations are “too afraid of conflict.” Getting past conflict—real or perceived—can lead to real breakthroughs. It’s up to leaders to empower employees to stand up to authority, and to to contribute toward building “thinking organizations and a thinking society.” Says Heffernan: “Openness isn’t the end, it’s the beginning.”
6. Lead Like the Great Conductors by Itay Talgam
The take-away: “Authority is not enough to make people your partners.” In this entertaining talk interspersed with snippets of great conductors at work, Talgam, an international business consultant and conductor, aptly compares business organizations with orchestras. “The joy is about enabling other peoples’ stories to be heard at the same time,” Talgam said.
Just like great conductors trust their musicians, good leaders trust their employees. “You know what to do and you become a partner…this is very exciting for those players,” he says. “When it’s needed the authority is there, but authority is not enough to make people your partners.” Instead, work toward “a wonderful point of doing without doing…. If you love something, give it away.”
7. Listen, Learn, and Then Lead by Stanley McChrystal
The take-away: “Leaders can let you fail and yet not let you be a failure.” Bringing deep military perspective to his talk, retired U.S. Army General McChrystal focuses on how the September 11 attacks changed his military views. Everything “was in a different context” and military leaders became “much more dispersed” with technology playing a big role. “Instead of giving orders, you’re now building consensus and you’re building a sense of shared purpose.”
McChrystal advises becoming “more transparent, willing to listen, and a lot more willing to be reverse-mentored from lower” levels within the organization when necessary. “A leader isn’t good because they’re right,” McChrystal notes. “They’re good because they’re willing to learn, and to trust.”
This is just a small sampling of the many TED Talks about leadership. Explore the site to find other inspiring words to help cultivate your own skills and become a better leader.
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